Manhattan voters have approved a 0.5 percent citywide sales tax measure.
The extension was passed by a landslide margin on Tuesday, with 11,138 voting in favor and 7,212 voting against. City manager Ron Fehr tells KMAN that passing this initiative will help the city pay down some of its debts.
“We’ll have the new revenue stream that will take care of those pledges and so we can start focusing on other priorities in recovery efforts right away with some of the proceeds that are currently in reserve,” he said.
The initiative calls on city government to use 70 percent of the 10-year tax for debt and infrastructure, 20 percent for economic development and 10 percent for workforce housing,. which administrators define as a program that will create affordable housing that will draw people to the community.
Manhattan Chamber of Commerce President Jason Smith, who supported the initiative, speaks to some more about the advantages the sales tax will provide to the city.
“By passing this initiative, we’ll be able to continue our economic development program and expand it and hopefully start a process of a faster recovery,” he said.
It’s estimated the annual revenues will increase from $3 million to $6.5 million under the nex tax which increases to 9.45 percent in Pottawatomie County, but remains 8.95 percent in Riley County.
“We see sales shifting east and because we’re seeing a lot of new construction and retailers on the east side of Manhattan, it will create opportunities we would not have had otherwise,” Smith said.
The revenues have not been collected in Pottawatomie County in two decades, according to Smith.
The sales tax collection will begin in 2023.
